Yes, I can appreciate the great movies – most of them, at least – but I find that I'm drawn to films that live on the fringes of polite movie society.
"The Mad Doctor of Blood Island" is a thoroughly unhinged mad scientist movie shot in the Philippines with an American cast, but a decidedly different point of view. I will watch damn near any film shot in that nation in the 1960s and '70s. They look and feel different, even if an American director is on board.
"The Fiend of Dope Island" is the kind of film that makes me wonder, "Just why did they make this thing?" Bruce Bennett was an Olympic athlete who was slated to play Tarzan at MGm before an injury prevented him from doing so. He made a number of low budget films under his real name of Herman Brix in the 1930s, but changed his name and appeared in a string of big budget A films for major studios. By the late 1950s, he appeared in this pt boiler. He also co-produced. It has an evil hypnotic char,
Few films deserve more of revival than "Shakes the Clown." Starring, written and directed by Bobcat Goldthwait, "Shakes" gives all of us who grew up mistrustful of clowns plenty of ammunition. Very funny and in highly questionable taste, "Shakes" is one of my favorites.
There are few films from the 1970s that I love more than this movie created on a dare by Joe Dante and Allan Arkush when they were cutting trailers for Roger Corman's New World Pictures. Made in 10 days and utilizing a lot of existing footage from other Corman movies, it has a true charm and stars an actress who is largely forgotten today, Candice Rialson. She was a young woman who should have been a major star, but spent most of her career in low budget films. She could have done much, much more.
By the way the trailer is not safe for work.
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
I've been watching a lot of DVDs for work and here's a few of them.
The Three Stooges
Like many Stooge fans I was very uncertain whether or not I should spend the cost of a movie ticket to go see this homage/rebooting of the venerable slapstick trio. After all, I couldn't see someone "being" Buster Keaton's or Charlie Chaplin's on-screen character in a new movie, so why the Stooges?
Fanboys hadn't been so divided about a movie since Tim Burton cast Michael Keaton as Batman.
Now that the film is on DVD, I'm willing to risk the time and reduced cost of admission to see it and I have to say that I enjoyed myself thoroughly with this love letter to Moe, Larry and Curly.
Rated PG, the film has just three gags that are more attuned to modern comedy conventions, with all the rest falling squarely in the Stooge's tried-and-true brand of ultra-violent slapstick.
Directors Bobby and Peter Farrelly are clearly devoted fans and they cast this film carefully with three actors who did the Stooges proud Chris Diamantopoulos as Moe, Sean Hayes as Larry and Will Sasso as Curly. Sasso had perhaps the most difficult assignment, considering how many people love Curly, and he carried it off well.
Hayes actually brings something extra to Larry and does a great reaction bit when Moe throws a live and irritated lobster down Larry's pants.
Acknowledging the beautiful Christine McIntyre, the long-time Stooge co-star who could either be a heroine or a villain the directors cast Sofia Vergara as the bad guy, something the actress seemed to enjoy.
The directors even used some of the original sound effects from the shorts and ended the film in a very appropriate Stooge manner.
Now if you don't like the original Stooges, you won't like this film, but if you're a Stooge fan, watch it.
By the way, at the end of the film is a short piece designed to keep youngster from doing things such as hitting each other over the head with a sledgehammer. I wondered if 20th Century Fox attorneys demanded this sequence to lower the studio's liability?
Pirates! Band of Misfits
Some people get all excited by a new animated release from Pixar, but I get twitchy when I learn that Aardman Studios have a new project. The people who brought audiences the adventures of Wallace and Gromit and "Chicken Run" are not only amazingly talented animators specializing in stop motion, but also are vastly clever.
"The Pirates!" may not be the studio's most laugh-out-loud film, but it provides a very enjoyable 90 minutes or so.
The story centers around The Pirate Captain, a man determined to be voted Pirate of the Year, but is so ineffective he doesn't have a chance. His men admire him, though, and stick with him when the ship's beloved pet Polly, the last dodo, is suddenly sought after by Charles Darwin who is in love with Queen Victoria!
This mixing and matching of real people and fictional characters — along with pirates of the 18th century with the technology of the latter 19th century is part of the film's unique charm.
To appreciate the animation one must watch the documentary that is included on the Blu-Ray (but not on the DVD). The process is astounding.
The voice cast is headed up by Hugh Grant, who does well, and also includes Martin Freeman and David Tennant.
For a great family night, get your hands on this film.
Girls Gone Dead
The late great David Friedman, producer of dozens of exploitation films, explained in many interviews that when you make such a movie you better be prepared to at some point give audiences what they expect.
This limp dishrag of a film purports to be a clever, sexy spoof of horror films, but instead is so dreadfully inept, your finger will be on the fast forward button throughout most of the film.
What can I say about a film whose cover graphics features an actress who doesn't appear in the film? Case closed.
I don't care how desperate you are standing at the Red Box on a Saturday night eager for something new to watch. Rent this and you will be sorry.
The Carol Burnett Show: Carol's Favorites
In this era and anything-goes comedy, one might think that episodes of a television variety show from the 1970s wouldn't have much to offer today's viewers.
If the show was "The Carol Burnett Show," that assumption would be wrong as this new five-disc collection shows.
Burnett was on television from 1967 to 1978 with a highly rated variety show. For readers younger than the age of 40, variety shows once roamed airwaves in the same numbers — almost as reality shows. They were a mainstay of television programming and Burnett's was consistently at the top of the heap.
Besides being an incredibly talented performer — fearless in doing almost anything for a laugh — Burnett surrounded herself with talent with her supporting cast and in the writers' room.
This collection features a selection of shows picked by Burnett and boy are there some great comedic moments here, including the hilarious send-up of "Gone With the Wind" and the skit about a nervous new dentist with Tim Conway and Harvey Korman.
As a kid, I hated "McHale's Navy" — I still think it's stupid — and at first I didn't care much for Tim Conway. His work on the Burnett show was a revelation to me, though. He was an amazing — and to his fellow performers, challenging — ad libber who would go off script as a comic inspiration hit him.
The collection also features several of the "Mr. Tudball and Mrs. Wiggans" sketches, which featured Conway as a frustrated boss and Burnett as the world's most dense secretary.
Vicki Lawrence, who was hired to play Burnett's sister in skits, also came into her own when the writers developed a recurring sketch called "The Family," in which Lawrence played the matriarch of a Southern family. The skit was so successful it was spun off as a separate series called "Mama's Family."
The set also has many extras, including some of Burnett's work on "The Garry Moore Show," plus many behind the scenes interviews.
This collection shows just how comedy has changed on television and not necessarily for the better.
The Dictator
If you're like me, you probably cringed so much through "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan," that you skipped Sacha Baron Cohen's follow-up film, "Brüno."
I admired "Borat" for its sheer comic audacity and for Cohen's satiric nerve, although I have to admit that watching two men wrestle in the nude wasn't my cup of tea.
Cohen returned to the screen in this far more conventional comedy that I certainly found funny with its political incorrectness.
Cohen plays Aladeen, the life-long dictator of a small northern African nation. He believes his people actually like being oppressed and uses his position to do outrageous actions to bolster his own ego, such as competing in a race and using the starter's pistol to wound his fellow runners.
During a trip to United Nations, Aladeen is a victim of a coup by his trusted second-in-command, but he manages to escape with his life — but not with his trademark beard.
Alone in New York, he accidentally meets the super liberal manager of an organic food store (played by Anna Faris with her usual cuteness) who believes he is a victim of the dictator's oppression. Aladeen isn't used to kindness and changes for a moment, until he hatches a plot to grab back his power.
Although "Borat" was studded with satiric digs, "The Dictator" is fairly standard in its storyline — funny but nothing new. It isn't until its conclusion that Cohen gives a biting monologue that certainly hits home this election year.
Although undoubtedly not for everyone, "The Dictator" provides some good laughs.
Absolutely Fabulous 20th Anniversary
Have you ever run into anyone who is determined to not act or dress their age and follow youthful trends despite the fact that such an effort makes them look pathetic and desperate? That's the premise on which Jennifer Saunders has based her hit television show "Absolutely Fabulous."
Saunders plays Edina Monsoon, an over-the-hill party girl obsessed with high fashion and fame, who supposedly has a public relations and management business, but really relies on alimony from her two husbands. Her best friend, Patsy Stone, played by Joanna Lumley, is also a fashionista, working for a style magazine. Stone is so burnt out from alcohol and drugs that she's not even sure how old she is.
Together, they attempt to stay up on the trends and appear to be important members of British society. Needless to say, they fail miserably.
Monsoon's problems are exacerbated by her mother and daughter, neither of whom is impressed with her shallow life.
Saunders' scripts are laced with biting social and pop culture satire as well as moments of old fashioned slapstick and politically incorrect humor. What has always been remarkable is the number of people from British fashion and entertainment who have been guest stars on the show, some even gladly suffering jokes at their own expense.
The show was a hit on Comedy Central and on BBC America and although the initial run ended years ago, Saunders and Lumley have reprised their characters in a series of specials.
This DVD contains the three latest shows, aired in Great Britain in 2011 and this summer. They are a scream with Saunders' scripts deftly referring to the ages of the characters.
I particularly enjoyed the show about the summer Olympics, which was broadcast in the UK in July.
If you already an "Ab Fab" fan, this DVD is a must-have. If you're not a fan, you might find the shows a little difficult to understand. As a writer, Saunders likes to build her comedy on the backstory she has developed, which will cause a person new to the series a little difficulty.
The extras on the disk include a short episode design to raise funds and awareness for a British charity and the making-of that show.
Watch a little "Ab Fab"online and then try this very funny DVD.
Cleanskin
A "cleanskin" is a person involved in some sort of undercover operation who has no record, a point that is pivotal in this very good and intense thriller about a series of terrorist attacks in London.
Sean Bean plays Ewan, a former British commando now employed as an operative by a branch of the British Secret Service. His current job is to follow the illegal sale of a box of plastic explosives to get at a terrorist cell.
There is a security breach and armed, masked men hijack the explosives. It is now Ewan's job to find the explosives before suicide bombers can use them.
What complicates his assignment is that his bosses need to have this operation completed before an up-coming election, so they can keep their jobs.
This is a gritty, no-wisecracking kind of action thriller and Bean does a great job as an emotionally broken man driven by the need to stop the terrorists before they can act.
What makes this film even more interesting is that director and writer Hadi Hajaig includes the backstory of the lead terrorist to try to show how this man made the decision to attack the country of his birth. This adds greater dramatic depth to the film.
Add a major twist ending and you have a really effective thriller. Be warned, though, the film doesn't mince on the violence, which may offend some people.
This C-47 transport plane was used in the invasion of Normandy on D-Day.
In the collection of the American Airpower Museum, it was given the nickname "Second Chance."
The spartan interior meant room for more troops and more supplies.
There's little room in the cockpit.
My dad's last plane, a B-52 bomber.
The vertical take-off Osprey drew crowds.
This modified Hercules cargo plane is iced for trips to the North and South Poles. Note the skis for landing.
Once my dad received special permission to show us a B-52 up close. For years, it was almost classified. I remember standing looking up at the bomb bay and thinking it was huge. It's become a bit smaller with age.
I love nose art, this one on a WWII vintage Avenger fighter.
This is General Hap Arnold's personal B-25.
Is there anything cooler than the standard nose art of the Warhawk?
Well, maybe a half-naked woman on a B-25 is cooler!
There are some assignments I truly enjoy and covering the Great New England Airshow at Westover Air Reserve Base is one of them. My dad, Gordon L. Dobbs, was a career Air Force officer, who entered the Army Air Corps as an enlisted man, applied to flight school on a bet and commanded a B-17 in Europe. He flew B-29s in Korea and was a B-52 nuclear pilot when he had an accident that left one side of his body paralyzed in 1961.
He recovered and continued in his career on the maintenance side. His last assignment was commanding a unit Bien Hoa outside of Saigon keeping helicopters in the air.
Three wars in one life. He retired after Vietnam.
For me growing up on and near air bases was all a great adventure. One of my earliest memories is visiting my father through a chain link fence when he was on nuclear duty. The bomber crews that were on alert had to stay in an underground barracks called "The Mole Hole" at Westover. My mom would come a pre-arranged time and Dad would come out to see us.
One of the biggest treats in the world to me was when he would bring home a spare flight meal. I thought this was the most exotic food possible.
I have very few regrets in my life, but one is not going into the Air Force myself. After his Vietnam experience, my dad had every mixed feelings about how the military treated its men and women.
I have been privileged to have flown in two different B-17s – my father's favorite plane – and both times I was practically moved to tears. Both flights took place after my dad's death in 1996 and they seemed to offer a link to him that I hadn't had before.
To this day, if I hear a plane overhead I will stop and look at it. The roar of a jet engine is actually a reassuring sound to me.
The following is what I wrote for the newspapers I edit.
WESTOVER ARB – As we cruised over Western Massachusetts and toward the Quabbin Reservoir, it occurred to me that the sound of the engines of the C-47 was what the paratroopers heard as it carried them to the D-Day invasion – that is until the plane crossed the English Channel and into the Nazi fortified coast of France.
I was one of the lucky members of the media to be invited to fly in literally a piece of history on Aug. 2.
It was all part of the publicity for the Great New England Air Show at Westover Air Reserve Base. The first air show in four years, the event drew hundreds of thousand of people last weekend.
This year’s edition was different as it emphasized two themes: a salute to the veterans of World War II and the display of planes that had been stationed at the base, including the B-52 bomber.
The C-47 was among those aircraft that flew from base from the late 1940s and into the 1950s.
The crowds walked a good part of the long length of the tarmac seeing a wide variety of aircraft, from a FedEx cargo jet to a LC 130 “Snow Bird,” a modified cargo plane with skis used by the New York Air National Guard for operations in the Arctic and Antarctica.
Many of the planes were open for visitors to go through them and to view the cockpits.
The C-47 was officially known as “The Skytrain” for its versatility in hauling people and cargo where it was needed, however it had another name, said affectionately during World War II, “The Gooney Bird.”
This particular C-47 brought British paratroopers to D-Day. It also played a role in the Israeli War of 1956 as part of the Israeli Air Force. It’s civilian counterpart, known as the DC-3, can still be seen in use, according to Ron Barris, a volunteer crew member from the American Airpower Museum in Farmingdale, N.Y., where this plane is part of the collection.
The C-47 also was known for its role in the ”Berlin Airlift,” which dropped food and supplies in 1948 and 1949 to the Allied occupied part of Berlin, Germany, to counter a blockade by the Soviet Union.
Barris said the first flight for this particular plane was in 1943.
John Purdy, the plane’s co-pilot, called the aircraft, “a grand old airplane.”
It’s “sweet” to fly, he added.
The plane had just come out of its annual inspection and is in a Federal Aviation Administration approved maintenance program.
As we were taxiing for takeoff, Barris explained, how the paratroopers connected their ripcords to a static line so their parachutes would automatically deploy as they jumped out over their target.
He added the Germans dug eight-foot-deep trenches filled with water, so if a paratrooper landed in it, the weight of his 85-pound backpack would drown him.
The plane has been restored with the kind of seats used by the paratroopers. Barris added the soldiers would sit with their packs on to add some protection from flack and shells fired at the plane.
The plane carried no armaments and relied on protection from other aircraft.
Once aloft, we were allowed to move around. The only convention to modern air travel is there were signs instructing passengers not to smoke and to fasten their seatbelts.
A blistering hot day, Barris noted with a smile that there would be some cool air once the plane reached its cruising attitude and the pilot opened up his window.
The cockpit was just big enough for pilot John Vocell and Purdy. The only other crewmember sat in a tight area with the radio gear.
For Capt. Matthew Bates, who is stationed at Westover, the C-47 had a special significance. Looking at the plane, he said his grandfather, Andrew Bates, was the pilot of a glider filled with supplies and troops that was being pulled by a C-47. His grandfather, who is still alive, unavoidably crashed the glider into a hedgerow during the D-Day invasion and was seriously injured.
The take-off was delayed a bit as Vocell was bringing in another plane from the museum, General Henry “Hap” Arnold’s personal B-25. The B-25 bomber was best known for Gen. James Doolittle raid on Tokyo.
The museum also flew in other World War II vintage aircraft, including a P-51 Mustang, a P-47 Thunderbolt, A FG-1D Corsair, a TMB Avenger and a P-40 Warhawk.
Four of the fighter planes and the B-25 put on a show for the people lining the edge of the runway that included a simulated bombing run with coordinated explosions on the ground.
As thrilling as that seemed, it was the maneuver to open the flying show that silenced the crowd. To honor those World War II veterans who have passed on, three of the fighters flew low over the runway and then one broke way from the formation heading nearly straight up into the clouds.
I don't ride a bike, but I would like to and I love going to Indian Day each year at the Springfield Museums. If I ever hit the lottery, one of the first things I'd buy would be a classic restored Indian. I guess I would have to learn to ride.
The Indian was the first successful American "motocycle," and was made here in Springfield, Mass. from 1901 to 1953. It was a product of the incredible pool of engineering and manufacturing talent here in Pioneer Valley.
On Indian Day, Indian owners ride their vintage bikes to town and it's quite a sight to see – rolling history.
The classic bikes summon up a time and place in this country – before the Interstate when U.S. highways such as Routes 20, 5 and 66 were the principal roads linking this nation.
It was a time of mechanical innovation, when someone working in their garage could change the course of a product or invent a new one.
The following are some of the photos I took.
Have a hankering to bring an Indian back to life? The guy who had this 1946 model was asking only $12,000 and assured me the engine was in great shape as all of the parts were in boxes!
I've been watching a lot of DVDs lately and here's a few thoughts!
The Decoy Bride
Normally I would avoid most any film that has the word "bride" in it only because of the prospects of yet another romantic comedy that is neither romantic nor funny.
But when "The Decoy Bride" was delivered to me, I knew I had to watch it. First, the film was shot in Scotland — my wife is Scottish — and second, it stars David Tennant.
Who? That's right, but actually you might know him with a title: Dr. Who.
Tennant is no longer traversing time and space in the long-running British science fiction series and he returned to his native Scotland to make this film.
The problem is the publicist sent the review copy in the Blu-Ray format instead of a DVD. I had to upgrade my technology in order to watch it, so I hoped it was actually worth of all of the expectations and the $100 in a new gizmo.
I'm happy to say this film is actually funny and the romance is actually acceptable even to this old curmudgeon.
Tennant plays James, an author who is engaged to Lara, a world famous movie star (played with sympathy by Alice Eve), and a woman who can't get a private moment away from the paparazzi. In an effort to thwart the press, the couple decides to get married on a small island that is part of the Hebrides.
At the same time, a resident of the island is coming home after her failed engagement. Kelly Macdonald is Katie, who seems to be willing to resign herself to a kind of exile.
When a persistent photographer shows up on the island, Lara's management comes up with a plan to fool him: stage a phony wedding with a decoy bride. Katie is recruited when they offer her 5,000 pounds.
Although Tennant's name may attract American fans to the film, the movie is really Macdonald's and she shines. She is a familiar face from a number of films including "No Country for Old Men," the last "Harry Potter" film and "Nanny McPhee," among others.
Now for those who might think a film full of Scottish accents would be a challenge, don't worry. Everyone makes allowances for non-Scottish audiences.
This little film is a lot of fun.
The Artist
Perhaps the most celebrated film from last year, "The Artist" is now out on DVD and Blu-Ray. I wrote about this movie when it was in theaters last year and was eager to see how it would be presented on home video.
The extras are pretty standard — interviews with the cast and crew and a gag reel — and I was surprised that they did not include something about the inspiration for the film and whether or not there were models for the characters and the events.
If you've not seen "The Artist" I urge you to do so.
Since "The Artist" was the first silent film many people had seen — and not one from the silent era of cinema — I thought it would be appropriate to present some information that might shed some additional light on the film and the time it recreates.
Did an actor like George Valentin really exist?
In interviews, star Jean Dujardin said his inspiration was Douglas Fairbanks Sr. and Gene Kelly. That's very apparent, as Valentin is cocky like Fairbanks, who was also extremely likable. The director even used a clip from Fairbank's first Zorro film as a wink to the audience. I think, though, the part of the film that chronicles Valentin's fall is modeled after John Gilbert.
Gilbert was a major star in the silent era. He is the actor who has been surrounded by a myth that his voice was so bad that sound ruined his career and he drank himself to death.
In reality, Gilbert's voice was just fine, but his clashes with MGM head Louis B. Mayer had more to do with crashing his career than sound. Gilbert was put into some poor films that spurred the legend about his voice.
Gilbert, sadly, suffered a fatal heart attack at the age of 39 that was undoubtedly brought on in part by his drinking.
Here's a clip of Gilbert speaking. His voice was fine, but the talkies in which he was placed by MGM were not.
Were there actors who decided to direct themselves who had disastrous results like Valentin?
One of the silent film's celebrated comics, Harry Langdon, had a near meteoric rise to fame after years of near obscurity. Frank Capra directed Langdon's most successful features, but Langdon dumped him. The comic directed three features in the late 1920s that showed he really didn't understand his own on-screen character very well.
Did silent films disappear as quickly as the film shows?
The success of "The Jazz Singer" in 1927 convinced many studios and theater owners that sound — which had been tried before — was worthy of investment.
By 1929, most films boasted of having recorded dialogue and sound effects. By 1930, only a relative handful of films were silent.
Only Charlie Chaplin resisted recorded dialogue and, like Valentin, thought sound was artistically inferior to silent films. Chaplin didn't perform any dialogue in his movies until he made "The Great Dictator" in 1940.
What's a short list of silent films to view?
Watching comedy is frequently the best way to break into silent film and I'm a huge fan of Buster Keaton. Try "Sherlock Junior." Harold Lloyd's films also hold up well and "Speedy" is a treat. Fairbanks' "Robin Hood" is a lot of swashbuckling fun. For something serious — and a bit twisted — Erich von Stroheim's dramas can't be beat.
One of my favorite silent films is Fritz Lang's science fiction fable "Metropolis," now finally in a version that restored Lang's vision from 1925.
John Carter
Many critics trashed this film adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs' venerable pulp science fiction series and honestly I don't why. Perhaps they didn't know what to expect from source material aimed at boys and men and first published in 1917?
Please.
This is what I call a "Boy's Life" movie — no slam intended to the Boy Scout magazine I certainly loved when I was kid. The hero acts like a hero, the princess is beautiful and capable, there is rousing action, interesting visuals and at the end you've had a good time.
There is no message, no outrageous sex, nudity or violence in this PG-13 movie. It's an old fashioned good guy versus bad guy adventure film.
John Carter is a Civil War vet who finds, quite by accident, a way to transport himself to Mars, or as the Martians call it Barsoom. There he finds several species of people fighting among themselves, including the tall green, multi-armed Tharks.
Because of the lower gravity, Carter can jump great distances — shades of the earliest form of Superman — and becomes a valuable warrior to the Tharks.
There's plenty of intrigue as well supplied by the Thern, an intergalactic race who go from planet to planet manipulating civilizations for their own purposes.
Andrew Stanton, the director of the animated hits "Wall-E" and "Finding Nemo," is a Burroughs fan and he does right with the material, even working Burroughs himself into the narrative.
I think the marketing of the film helped sink it at the American box office, where the film lost money. Interestingly, it was a huge hit overseas and, with DVD sales as well as pay-per-view, the film just might break even, eventually. The trailer of the film didn't seem to convey what this film was about and the title — "John Carter of Mars" or the original book title "A Princess of Mars" would have been better.
If you're looking for a perfect summer movie that all but the youngest members of the family can enjoy, gamble a rental fee and get "John Carter."
Billy the Exterminator, season four
Storage Wars, season two
Gene Simmons Family Jewels, season six, volumes one and two
Top Shot, season four
Pawn Stars, volume four
Thanks to DVDs, we can have summer television reruns whenever we want them as this new group of releases proves.
I will sheepishly admit that I do watch reality television, but I can't see collecting reality television to watch over and over. I will also admit that is a position that makes no logical sense as I do collect movies and will watch them multiple times.
I can't explain it. It's an enigma, wrapped in a conundrum with a creamy puzzle center. However, to each their own.
"Billy the Exterminator" perhaps is the most formulaic of the bunch. Billy gets a call to remove some sort of varmint. Billy goes out to the work site and removes the offending animal. He does so wearing heavy metal country rock clothes and giving us play-by-play commentary showing his familiarity with the critter.
How many times do I need to see him do this?
At least "Top Shot" is a marksmanship contest, which like any athletic event has the elements of uncertainty.
"Storage Wars" merely pushes the concept of finding something valuable in a heap of crap and then finding out who has made the most money by doing so. Frankly, "Pawn Stars" and "American Pickers" are more interesting and informative.
A group of "characters" with various backstories compete with each other bidding on abandoned storage lockers and the stuff therein. They hope their cursory examinations of the contents give them some idea if the material is worth something.
Yawn.
Rock entrepreneur Gene Simmons is probably the smartest guy in pop music as he turned KISS into a juggernaut of merchandising. At a time when other musicians of his age are either oldies acts or signing autographs for $20 bucks at conventions, Simmons is rising much higher with this reality show depicting his family life.
Simmons, who also co-produces the show, understands both the fundamentals of soap opera and the sit-com. Like many classic TV comedies, Simmons knows the role of the father is to be an idiot and he gladly plays it. He also knows the dramatic value of those episodes in which he debates whether or not he should marry Shannon Tweed, his long-time girlfriend and mother of his two children.
Simmons' show can be entertaining at least, something many other similar shows are not.
The reality show that is my most frequent guilty pleasure is "Pawn Stars," only because I actually learn things from the show but also, like "Antique Roadshow," I'm intrigued by items that people have either stumbled across at flea markets or acquired through their families.
The interaction among the Harrison family who run the pawnshop in Las Vegas is far less interesting to me than what people bring in to sell.
Of this group, a positive nod to "Pawn Stars," and furtive approval to "Family Jewels."
Sherlock
If you have not yet discovered "Sherlock," now is the time to do so.
BBC Home Video has recently released the second season of this updating of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's venerable detective and if you're a mystery fan or a Holmes fan, you need to see it.
I have to admit that I viewed the new show with some trepidation. Sherlock Holmes has been one of the sturdy literary characters when it comes to adaptations into other media, but not all of the actors or adaptations have worked.
I will readily admit that I'm definitely a Basil Rathbone/ Peter Cushing/ Jeremy Brett enthusiast, but I'm open to other interpretations of Holmes. I've always preferred depictions of Dr. Watson that were not comic relief.
So I came to this new show wondering if the approach was going to be straight or campy, retro or ironic. I'm happy to say that Conan Doyle himself would probably see how well his character could fit into the 21st century.
Dr. John Watson's original backstory is that he is an Army doctor who has been injured in a war in Afghanistan and the new show has maintained it, as it is frighteningly appropriate today. Martin Freeman, best known to American audiences from the original production of "The Office," plays Watson as a bright, competent man who is trying to deal with his post-war life. His involvement with Holmes is accidental and has more to do with finding a place to live than anything else.
The only reason Watson seems a bit thick at times is because Holmes is such a genius. Conan Doyle always characterized his hero has someone seeking a puzzle to solve, afraid of being bored and, despite his general lack of concern for the human race, needed someone to act as a companion and humanizing agent.
These are all qualities the new show has brought to its stories. This Holmes is described as a "highly functioning sociopath," and yet with Benedict Cumberbatch's performance he is still a likable hero. Physically, Cumberbatch is also perfect, although his Holmes is a bit more physically agile than earlier versions.
The strength of the Conan Doyle stories and characters is evident in the new show. Mycroft Holmes, Sherlock's older brother, was a high level government official involved with secrets. That fits in perfectly today. So does crime genius Professor Moriarty.
I was curious how a story such as "The Hound of the Baskervilles" would work today. One of the most horrific of the Conan Doyle stories and one with a genuine monster, the new adaptation brought these elements along and they fit perfectly as Homes and Watson investigate sightings of a horrendous beast near a government research facility.
The pacing of these shows is brisk and I like how there is a visual device to show how Holmes thinks.
My wife and I found these shows to be pretty addictive and wanted to watch one after another. In a summer filled with re-runs and derivative reality shows, "Sherlock" on DVD is a must-see.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Recently I received the "The Three Stooges: The Ultimate Collection" for review. The following is what I wrote for the newspapers I edit with some additional information.
Many times when I receive a boxed set of a series of movies or television shows to review, the reaction around the office is "Why would spend $100 on that?"
When "The Three Stooges: The Ultimate Collection" came into the office, though, I had to fight to keep it.
It's difficult to believe that "The Three Stooges," now seen as American comedy icons, were once an act that were popular with audiences but received little critical attention or respect. Today, I predict, this boxed set, which runs around $100, will sell well due to the several generations that discovered the Stooges' short subjects on television.
I'm not sure who said the world could be divided into two groups of people those who like "The Three Stooges" and those who don't but that person is correct. Not everyone appreciates the barrage of one-liners, silly situations and often shudder-inducing physical violence that are the hallmarks of the best Stooge shorts.
The Stooges were part of a rich comedy tradition that was killed by television in the 1950s: the short subject. Theater owners used to create a program of feature films and shorts to entice audiences to come to their theater. Today's audiences might find it difficult to believe but in the 1920s through the early 1950s, the bills at theaters would change weekly and theater owners knew they were in a competitive business. They wanted to give people reasons to return, and running short subjects that were popular were part of that strategy.
The Stooges made the shorts at Columbia, which had a huge comedy unit turning out 20-minute comedies two reelers as they were called with a wide variety of stars, from Buster Keaton to Andy Clyde to El Brendel. The Stooges not only had the longest-running series from 1934 to 1959 but certainly the most popular.
Typically, the short subjects were a proving ground for comics, who would then try to graduate to feature films, such as Laurel and Hardy. The Stooges, although they appeared in features, never were stars in longer films until after 1958.
This 20-disc set gives a viewer the opportunity to see the growth and decline of the two reelers and how the studio's cost-cutting measures affected the Stooges' films. It also shows how the act differed with the arrival of new members.
If nothing else, this boxed set will show that Shemp Howard was a great comic and that many of the shorts featuring Shemp were just as funny as the shorts with Curly, the most popular stooge.
Shemp was the original third stooge and had left the act before the contract with Columbia. He had established himself as a busy character actor and comic, appearing in feature films and in shorts.
The most impressive thing about the collection besides having all 190 "Stooge" shorts in a single collection is the bonus disc with 11 more hours of material.
Columbia has a rich history, but the current owners, Sony, have been pretty stingy about releasing material for which hardcore film fans have long clamored: two-reel comedies and cartoons. In this collection, the producers give us two of the Stooges' feature appearances: "Rocking the Rockies" and "Have Rocket will Travel."
"Rocking the Rockies" is a 1945 B-movie that stars the Stooges in what is billed as a Western comedy, but is really a loosely written musical revue featuring Western swing acts and the Hoosier Hotshots, a novelty band. The film is interesting, but not necessarily good.
There was way too much music and not enough comedy in the film. Columbia clearly didn't know how to make a long-form Stooge film and the film has Moe's character separate from larry and Curly. It's interesting that the Stooges themselves when no longer under contract to Columbia came up with the series of successful kid films.
The second feature features "Curly Joe" DeRita, the last third stooge. The Stooges made a series of very well received comedies for kids and this was the first one, released in 1959.
The other bonus items includes three beautiful Columbia Technicolor cartoons that include caricatures of the Stooges and a treasure trove of Columbia two-reelers featuring Shemp as a co-star, Shemp as a star, as well as starring shorts featuring Joe Besser and DeRita.
I can't understand what potential Columbia saw in DeRita as he was far from an appealing comic. His series of shorts lasted only four installments and one can understand why.
There are also quite a lot of Shemp solo efforts in the collection including this short.
Although maligned by Stooge fans, Besser was an accomplished comic, whose shorts were funny and would have been better if produced at a time when the budgets were more generous and more care was taken.
There are weeks worth of great viewing in this set, which would have only been better if there had been a booklet to put the bonus material into a historical context.
For anyone seriously interested in American screen comedy, this is essential.
Last summer, my buddy Steve Bissette waxed eloquently about the virtues of one nasty little horror film "Creature."
Steve's reason for such a display of manly movie love was that "Creature" was an unadorned, unapologetic 1970s style drive in movie. It is low down, no holds barred film that would have been at home at any "ozoner" – a term Variety used to denote a drive-in – back in the day.
The fact that "Creature" was an abject failure at the box-office clouded some people's perception about the film. The mere fact it had a national theatrical run at all was a story in itself. Distribution is so tied up in this country it's next to impossible to get a low budget film into a theater.
Here's the trailer so you can get some of its retro flavor.
Sex, violence, a man in a monster suit and Sid Haig – get the picture?
Now, I've not yet seen "Creature," but I recently bought a film that is my candidate for a perfect little exploitation film: "Bitch Slap." Why is this a gem?
First, it has a wonderful exploitation title. I saw this film on the racks about two years ago and instantly wondered just what the heck it was. Getting someone to question what a film is about is a great marketing tool and exploitation is all about marketing.
The film makers knew exactly where they were going with the film. There is no pretension to aspire to art. Instead, as revealed in the great making of feature, the director and producer wanted to make an over-the-top film featuring three very hot women beating the crap out of some men, but primarily themselves as they search for some sort of treasure.
They chose performers who did the roles proudly. The three female leads were not known to me, but these women certainly gave it their all. There is only one brief moment of naked breasts in the film and none of the principals are involved with that scene. Instead there is a whole lot of old fashioned sizzle. I'm sure the push-up bras made up a significant part of the costuming budget!
With exploitation you have to deliver what the audience expects and with a film like this, the fight scenes need to be epic. Thanks to stunt coordinator Zoe Bell, they are exactly as what would hope.
The producer also made sure there were surprises. Eric Gruendeman and Rick Jacobson worked on both the "Xena" and "Hercules" televisions series. Michael Hurst, the co-star on "Hercules" plays a major role here, and Lucy Lawless and Kevin Sorbo makes cameos.
The budget was used well and with the use of a green screen, there are multiple virtual locations, but actually only one real one – a smart move. The script was obviously written to the budget, another smart move.
I had a ball with this politically incorrect movie. Perhaps it and "Creature" would make for a solid double bill. Now, if you have a countdown clock to run in the intermission your show would be complete!
Monday, June 11, 2012
Mary and I just got back to a trip to Virginia to see my mom, my brother Patrick and one of his sons, Matthew and his wife Annette. Matthew and Patrick have partnered in a new business, Street Rockets of Virginia and I happy to report they are doing quite well.
Originally, Matt wanted to sell used cycles and accessories, but state regulations proved to be not worth the effort to surmount them. So, he is building a business based on the needs of bike owners not to just maintain their rides, but to upgrade them.
Also at the heart of the business is supplying riders with what they want to wear. The proper t-shirt, sunglasses and jacket are very important.
My nephew is a born salesman and is a diehard rider, so I think he will be successful in this venture. His father is backing him 100 percent. I need a get a cycle now!
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Cape Cod trip
Mary and I went to our timeshare on the Cape for a week earlier this month for a very necessary time of unplugging and re-charging.I find about the only way I can truly relax is to not watch the news, not check news websites and do nothing that smacks of my work.
Up in Wellfleet on U.S. Route 6 we found a barbecue place that was definitely worth going to again. Wellfleet is also home to Books by the Ocean, an insanely claustrophobic used bookstore with tons of odd items. I picked up a wonderful still of Joan Blondell from "Havana Widows." The only problem with the place is that many items – magazines and comics – are in plastic bags which you're not allowed to open. I do it anyway.
The Greenbriar Nature Center in Sandwich is a regular stop for us. Celebrating the life and career of children's author Thornton W. Burgess, the facility also features a large jam and jelly kitchen.
The center has a collection of original Harrison Cady art. I'd never seen this image before.
We had always wanted to walk through the Old Town Cemetery at Sandwich, which was the first settlement on the cape.
I'm fascinated by the imagery used on the stones and how over years the angelic images changed to a weeping willow.
I wondered if this was a portrait of the deceased.
If I was to be buried, this skull image would be on my grave marker.
This inscription was amazing in detail. People actually wanted their loved ones remembered and frequently suppled much information about them.
We drove around the Cape quite a bit and stopped at the Chatham light house.
There were many walks on the beach.
This gull was looking for a hand-out.
This is Mary's favorite activity: watching the ocean.
Despite cool temperatures and persistent winds, I managed smoking a cigar.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
So, in 2007, my buddy Marty Langford calls me to see if a friend of his could shoot some footage for a movie he was making in our office since a newspaper was one of the key settings in the film.
I asked my boss who said , "Yes," especially after he learn the star of the film was Corbin Bernsen, the busy and popular star of television shows and a number of films.
I was very happy that, even though I wasn't on film as an extra, my office was cast as belonging to Corbin's character, a reporter in the Kolchak mold. I was even happier that the daughter of the late Darren McGavin was working on the film and sat down to speak with me about her father. She liked the fact I had a copy of the famous "leg lamp" on my desk.
Film-making isn't terribly glamourous. I've been on two sets and indeed there is a tremendous amount of time devoted to setting up a shot that lasts on screen for seconds. Still, as a film guy, both visits have been fun and very informative.
So now, years letter, I had the chance of seeing a completed cut of the film at the Bing Arts Center here in town. Now called "Hellbeast: The Ascension," the film is actually of combination of footage shot by producer and director Bob Stock did known as "Angel's Blade" with the footage he shot with Bernsen.
It was the first American screening of the film, as Stock has made only foreign sales of it.
Let me first present the material I wrote at the time of the shoot and then I'll offer a little review.
Corbin Bernsen sits in my editor's chair as William Gove, the director of photography and Bob Stock (back to camera) lines up a shot in my office.
EAST LONGMEADOW It's mid-way through Wednesday afternoon and actor Corbin Bernsen is walking up and down an aisle through the cubicles at Reminder Publications' office saying the same line over and over.
Bernsen strides down the aisle, looks into the camera in the cubicle and delivers the simple line, "Thank you very much, Sarah" about nine different times. Each one is a different reading of the line.
It's slightly surreal to have a well known actor a long stint on "L.A. Law," films such as "Major League" and currently a co-star on the USA Network show "Psych" filming in your office, much less hanging out and munching on donuts.
Bernsen is the star of the new film "Angel's Blade 2: The Ascension," written, directed and produced by Robert Stock of Granby. A day of shooting needed to be at a newspaper office since Bernsen's character is an investigative reporter caught up in a story of the paranormal.
Stock's crew took over the East Longmeadow offices for a day, much to the delight of the staff of Reminder Publications. Autographed photos of Bernsen decorate many cubicles.
Stock is a computer animator and games designer who produced, wrote and directed "Angel's Blade," a horror film set in both the present day and the 19th century over a year ago. He did a test screening of the film in a Long Island theater and is revising and augmenting some of the film's special effects.
Stock is co-producing the second film with Angel Light Pictures and, unlike the first film, has a name actor in a pivotal role. Bernsen's role is a loving homage to "Carl Kolchak," the character created by the late Darren McGavin in the highly popular "Nightstalker" movies and television series from the 1970s.
An interesting coincidence is that McGavin's daughter, Graemm, is the film's line producer. She also has a small role in the film.
This writer was heartened that his messy, artifact-strewn office was deemed "funky" by the crew and became the home for Bernsen's character.
Tony Timpone, the editor of "Fangoria Magazine" the bible for horror film fans was also here for the role of Bernsen's boss at the newspaper. It was a smart casting move, as that will insure Stock receives coverage for his film in the national magazine.
The film has a four-week shooting schedule and only had Bernsen for three days, so all of his scenes had to be shot as efficiently as possible.
Those who think filmmaking must be glamorous might be surprised at the Spartan world of the independent production. A crew of less than ten people set up the cameras and sound. Digital films gives greater flexibility with lighting and no lights were set up for the scenes.
Fueled by donuts and coffee in the morning, the crew's lunch break was to eat sandwiches from Romito's Deli while standing up. The production rented a RV for a dressing room.
The simplest of scenes requires multiple takes to make sure the sound, image and the performance are all optimal.
For a performer who has been in a variety of productions, Bernsen seemed right at home shooting a low-budget horror film in Western Massachusetts.
"I'm very much into the indie world," he said during a break.
Despite his status, Bernsen never pulls rank or complains. Crew members talk among themselves about how he is bringing so much value to the production.
If he likes a script and he can do the role, he'll consider it, he explained. Bernsen said he was pleased he could do this film as he was on the east coast dropping his son off at the University of Connecticut.
Bernsen likened his job to that of a carpenter. "Sometimes you work on castles and sometimes on outhouses," he said.
And, he added, sometimes it's a crumby castle and a great outhouse.
"If you're an actor, you act," he said.
What he likes about independent films is they have "more soul."
"They're all heart, all passion," he added.
Because he came to prominence on a hit television show, "L.A. Law," Bernsen admitted to having a problem years ago with his career not reaching a higher level. He said that as his career grew, he loved it.
He has formed his own company and is producing his own independent films. One is completed and is available on DVD, "Carpool Guy," while two others, "Donna on Demand" and "Dead Air," are in various stages of production.
Bernsen directed "Carpool Guy," which is a comedy starring ten soap opera actors in roles very different than those they play on television.
He said he loves directing and producing, but "it's a lot of work."
Although he said that beginning a directing career in his fifties requires a lot of energy, his experience in the industry has given him knowledge that younger persons might not have.
He said with a smile that directing has given him the same kind of thrill he received when he first discovered sex just the kind of remark his Arnie Becker character might make.
About a year later, Marty told me that Stock was bringing Bernsen back out for one day's worth of pick-up shots. I hung out for a while at Stock's home and studio in Granby and watched Stock direct a series of close-up and reactions shots to special effects that would be added later. Bernsen proved once more to a good-natured professional.
Drivers along West Street in Granby on Oct. 13 had no idea that behind a stockade fence film director and producer Bob Stock was shooting some additional footage for his movie "Angel's Blade 2" with its star Corbin Bernsen. Stock had completed principal photography last summer, but needed some more scenes with Bernsen for the final narrative.
For a low-budget – under $200,000 – film, "Hellbeast: The Ascension" actually has a number of features that makes it a cut above the indie horror pack.
Not the least of those features is an attractive and competent cast headed by Bernsen, who did as much with the role as he could.
The CGI special effects ranged from being acceptable to a little clunky and technical features such as editing, set dressing and locations were quite good.
And like any low-budget horror film, the movie features some gore and one scene of nudity.
The problem with the film was the script, which Stock said had been re-written several times during the stages of production. Multiple scenes had been shot and cut, along with characters, he said at the screening.
The result is a narrative that goes from one plot point to another with varying degrees of smoothness and logic. There are gaps in the film's story that one is asked to accept and the end of the film made very little sense. A filmmaker can only do so much in editing and adding narrative devices, though, if the the story on paper really hasn't been established.
The film opens with Bernsen having a drink a bar, when approached by a woman clearly trying to pick him up. He recounts the events of the previous week in which he had discovered that an 19th century explorer had opened up a Mayan entry point into another world through which two evil demigods had made the trip to our world. They had to take the lives of four people through suicide and then take another four before they could establish themselves as the rulers of this world.
Apparently though a young bearded man wearing a "Jesus Saves" t-shirt had also come through the portal to fight these beings.
Bernsen's reporter character finds himself in the middle of these events when he investigates the four suicides.
I think what Stock certainly proved is there is plenty of local production talent here in Western Massachusetts as well as a wealth of interesting locations – two of my favorite Springfield institutions, Smith's Billiards and Theodore's, are prominently featured. With the right script, a low-budget film can get some additional luster when shot in an off,off Hollywood location such as here.
Perhaps the reason I saved a bunch of "With Sgt. Mike" cartoons, is the my father served in Vietnam. A career Air Force officer, it was his final tour of duty as the commander of a unit at Bien Hoa maintaining helicopters.
Today I'm glad that in 1968 and 1969 I clipped the cartoons from, I believe, the Holyoke Transcript.
I believe, although I certainly could be wrong, that "With Sgt. Mike" was the last nationally syndicated comic strip that was created to comment on a specific war and on the condition of American troops in that war.
Service comedy is a signifiant genre in American popular culture. Think of movies such as "Buck Privates," comic strips such as "Beetle Bailey" and television shows such as Phil Silvers' Sgt. Bilko," "I Dream of Jeannie" and "Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C." The bureaucracy of the military, the questioning of authority and the peace-time missions that spawned behaviors out of boredom have all been basis for comedy.
Shows or movies that adds the real issues of war into the comic stew are tricker propositions. A show such as "M.A.S.H." certainly proved that it could be done.
"With Sgt. Mike" had far less polish than a "Beetle Bailey," but far more soul. The cartoonist, Michael T. Hodgson, was a Marine who served in Vietnam. This is all I know about him. His work was definitely in the tradition of "Willie and Joe" and "Sad Sack."
The tone of his work is pretty black, but he pulls it off because he is writing from experience. He successfully conveyed the ambiguity of the troop's feeling: they wanted to complete the mission, even if they question it.
What fascinates me today is how much of his humor is applicable to what American troops are experiencing now in the longest conflict in the nation's history.
Who was or, hopefully is, Mike Hodgson? I've not been able to dig up much information. The cartoons were collected in one volume published in 1970 and copies can be found on eBay.
